Hamilton City Council is Ready to Reinvest

The Council yesterday adopted its draft
Annual Plan, which includes budget allocated to
significantly develop Hamilton Gardens, finish a plan for
development around the river, upgrade playgrounds and allow
free access to pools for children under-5s.

The
council also agreed to invest an additional $362,000 on city
safety initiatives, responding to an urgent call for action
from the community, addressing concerns that people were
feeling unsafe in some public areas.

Mayor Hardaker
says "The Council’s financial performance is tracking
better than originally planned. We are on track to balance
the books by 2017 and are now able to direct investment to
the things that matter to Hamiltonians”

The City
is keeping to its planned rates rise of 3.8% and within debt
limits due to operational savings that have been made, asset
sales and reassignment of some budgets.

Mayor
Hardaker: “I am really excited about this Annual Plan. I
think the projects we are proposing reflects what the people
who live here want. We’re investing in things that are
special to Hamilton’s identity and things that give us the
unique lifestyle that we enjoy”.

Proposals in the
draft include:• an additional $362,000 on city safety
initiatives• $10 plus gst charged to every property
for four years to enable completion of five new themed
gardens at Hamilton Gardens• destination playgrounds
being upgraded• free access to Council pools for
under-5s.The draft Annual Plan is open for feedback from 2 April - 2 May. Copies will be available on our website at www.hamilton.govt.nz/annualplan and a summary document will be delivered to all residents on 5 April in the latest City News.

The quashing of the convictions of Teina Pora for the rape and murder of Susan Burdett in 1992 has shone a spotlight once again on a major gap in the New Zealand justice system.

To all intents and purposes, access by New Zealanders to the Privy Council has now been closed. Yet the number of times in recent years when the Privy Council has quashed the findings of New Zealand courts has demonstrated that we are regularly(a) jailing the wrong person or(b) arriving at guilty verdicts on grounds sufficiently flawed as to raise serious doubts that a miscarriage of justice has occurred. More>>

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